Bourke High School Wangkumarra Stage 4
www.bourke-h.schools.nsw.edu.au
Introducing the Aboriginal Languages Program Team
Clancy McKellar, Aboriginal Community Language Teacher
Greg McKellar, Community Language Advisor, Muda Aboriginal Corporation
Berdine Warne, Art Teacher
Tyson Yunkaporta, Aboriginal Education Consultant
Aboriginal Languages Program Team
Background
At the end of 2006, the Board of Studies coordinated a meeting in Bourke with the DET regional office staff, local school principals, the local Aboriginal Language Corporation (Muda), the Bourke Community Working Party (CWP) and other community representatives. Everyone was supportive of establishing an Aboriginal languages program in Bourke. Several languages are represented in the Bourke community. Following the advice of a CWP meeting, and given the teachers, resources and support available through Muda Aboriginal Corporation, a team was established to write a Stage 4 100-hour Wangkumarra language program. In Term 4, 2006, the schools and Muda staff dedicated a significant amount of time to this task – the team planned and wrote the program 3 days per week for 5 weeks. The 100-hour Stage 4 Wangkumarra course has now been taught in 2007 and 2008 with two Year 8 classes each year.